[From Heaven to the Hay in the Heart] Part 2Sýnishorn

Christmas Makes Us Look To Heaven

The Gospel of Luke tells us that some shepherds were guarding their flocks at night when an angel of the Lord appeared unto them, and the Lord’s glory shone upon them. Luke tells us they were very afraid, but that angel told them not to be afraid, as he was bringing them good and wonderful news: the Savior, who is Christ the Lord, had been born that night. After he spoke to them, a great assembly of heavenly hosts praised God along with him. What a vision, what a tremendous glimpse of heavenly apparitions and glory!

The angel of the Lord came to some tired and hardworking shepherds. They had worked all day and were still working at night. Yet God chose to refresh them. That is also what Jesus came to Earth to do. He came for the tired, for the heavy-laden. Aren’t we a tired people, a tired culture? We must put up with so many demands and not enough time. But the Bible tells us that the Lord will refresh the weary and satisfy those who are about to faint. He will renew our strength.

The author of Hebrews tells us in chapter 4 that we must make every effort, we must strive to enter God’s rest. We do have a High Priest who can empathize with our weaknesses, One who can certainly understand how tired we are, and in so many ways. Therefore, this author says that we can approach the throne of God with confidence, and we will receive mercy and grace to help us continue.

We need to pay attention to these words in Hebrews. We are told to make every conscious effort to enter God’s rest. This sounds like a commandment, but it is given because God desires that we find rest in Him. Fatigue and weariness can lead us to dry places, and dry places drain us of spiritual strength. 

The shepherds we read about in Luke 2 were hardworking and likely, very tired people; nevertheless, heaven opened for them. Anyone who asks Jesus into his or her heart finds rest in God. You will certainly have a heavenly experience after being born again of the Spirit.